LAKELAND, Fla.—Over half of the points the Southeastern men's basketball team scored in a 75-59 win over Trinity College came in the lane.
Post players
Wesley Johnson (18) and
Josue Celestin (11) were dominant, getting to the basket at will.
"Our big guys did a better job tonight," said coach
R-Jay Barsh. "We still have to do a better job finishing around the rim and getting those and-1's and not putting teams at the free throw line."
Both teams struggled with their outside shooting with the first made 3-pointer for either team coming at the 10:16 mark of the first half from Trinity's D'Andre Manley to tie the game at 16. At that point, the Fire took control of the game with a 25-5 run to end the half and take a 41-21 lead to the halftime locker room.
With 8:38 left in the second, Trinity cut the deficit from as much as 24 down to 11 (56-45), scoring 12 straight points.
Harrison Hebert then scored nine straight points of his own to start a 14-3 run and put the game away.
"I was glad to see him stick with it," said Barsh of Hebert. "He's had some nights where if shots didn't fall, he didn't do other things, so for him to get a double-double is big for us."
Hebert recorded a game-high 12 rebounds to go with his 11 points.
The Tigers committed 13 turnovers, and shot just 27% from 3-point range.
"We've been working on our defensive intensity," said Barsh. "We're not a volume scoring team, so we need to get stops which has been our focus."
Freshman
Jeremy Oppenheimer added 12 points, six rebounds, and three assists to the winning effort.
The Fire return to action on Friday at the Johnson University classic, taking on Trinity Baptist College.
